Solo boy here too. 67 years old and i love what i do. Our east coast trees are much smaller and considerably more limby...but your work inspires me to feel im at 200'.
I've been a well respected 35 yr. Solo professional Arborist that has self trained using Buckingham training DVDs , Bailey's training , etc. . I've climbed and chunked trees down, hundreds of them from fir , pine and hemlock nearly 100 ft , to shooting slick lines in high canopies on trees with wide crowns to set 1/2" climbing lines.From foot lock climbing to spike climbing I've tackled some respectable work over the years an never suffered an accident other than a few scratches. Bravo ,bravo on your video as you delivered a well explained safe method of take down and removal while stressing the need to protect property on the ground. God speed Brother . My work is done here at age 66, as of just 5 weeks ago I was diagnosed with paralyzing spinal bone cancer and am I devastated ,well I would be lying if I said no. However I cared for my wife 14 mo.before she passed back in 2013 and I pray to my savior for eternal life with her ! Life here is only a test and I've failed miserably many time, I only pray that God heals my wounds.
Thanks for your comment Walt, but it grieves me to here about your illness and the loss of your wife. As I was telling one of our brothers on the channel: Jesus Christ will come back and wipe away all tears one day. Until then, we need to continue persevering and leaning on each other when we are going through hard times. This life is full of trials and tribulations. I am not in your shoes, so I cannot say I understand what you are going through. Stand fast in the Lord, and don't let your faith waiver. Once you are saved, you are sealed by the Holy Spirit until the day of redemption Ephesians 4:30. Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. We have all come short, don't beat yourself up. God knew we could never keep the law, it was merely given to us to see how incapable we are as humans to live up to his standard. We simply trust in Christ Jesus and God credits us with His righteousness so we can enter heaven one day. I will pray for you tonight before I sleep that God will comfort you and give you the strength to continue fighting the good fight. Psalms 32:7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.
@@S.L.T.S.21I’ve seen a couple cause my uncle used to climb tress back in the 70’s 80’s and 90’s but he passed away so I’ve been around but never thought about climbing after working around it again this summer so there are a few good starting out climbing videos on RU-vid. Most of em guys out in Washington St area. This is my first time seeing this guy or video
Man, I am just a big fan of your work. I’m a solo climber owner on the east coast and i really enjoyed the way you edited and narrated. keep up the good work.
very impressive. as an old climber (71) i can see you are a master of techniques that have been used for decades and also some of your own extras that work well. very good teaching too. thank you
I dont know how im just now finding this channel... this dude deserves a LOT more attention. VERY informative and thought out vids, good for beginners or even more experienced climbers. Been binging on this channels content for a couple days. Cheers and climb safe hans solo lol
I like the excavator idea I normally don't end up using one when there not someone in it to run it. With lifting with enough pressure yourtrack are off the ground by a foot or so would save me alot of banging on wedges lol .or setting a rope. I end up doin that alot. Great work stay safe
Thank you this is my first time trying to cut the tree of my first home as of today, May 4, 2023, in a suburban area. So far I’m actually doing significant work. Height is about 52 feet and I have another tree next to the house that is close to 100. Friends are trying to discourage me from doing it but I tell them that whatever mountains I find I’ll climb them if I truly think it’s possible. Thank you again and I’ll update my journey too.
GR-81 be careful brother and go slow. Make sure you are double tied in with two lanyards as you are learning. Definitely let us know how it goes. Also, make sure you have a CAT tourniquet with you at all times while climbing. Watch some videos on them if you are not familiar with how they work. One cut will put your out of commission if you don't have something to stop the bleeding.
Great job man. Good idea leaving stubs. You can also cut a few limbs off the high side while leaving them on the low side. That not only keeps the piece from rolling but also puts weight on the downhill side which helps in tipping it.
Brother this is good stuff! I knew you were a good guy when I saw both husqy and Stihl saws come out. No sexism here lol just getting after it and puttin wood on the ground safely. If I could suggest something just cut your branches a little more flush so as not to get poked if you gaff out. Stay safe! Have fun! Love your channel.
I think I may have seen this before, but now watching appreciate it enough to say, totally amazing, good on you... Been doing tree stuff for a while, you rock... Many Blessings be yours.........
God bless, you are a great content creator, one of the best videos I've seen on RU-vid. I'm looking into starting a small felling business, this looks scary though. I'm used to fell trees in forests with low to no risk involved. I don't comprehend your felling tech on the tops. I would be so scared to fell the wrong way. Well done brother.
You make a great point about the wind. Everything was going great on one of my first trees, a 120ft Douglas fir. I Limbed everything up and was going to top the last 20ft. I Made my face cut and as I was making my back cut the wind kicked up and pushed the top back in the opposite direction pinching my blade and pinning it so tight I could not free it up. It wasn't even a strong wind, just a light breeze. It was probably only about 5 minutes that I had to wait for the wind to die down before I could finish the cut but it seemed like an eternity.
You're an inspiration, along with many others in this profession. Everyone around me says this is the kind of job I can't do solo. Disheartening to say the least, but the proof otherwise is in the pudding with guys like you. I like the music too, something about ambient music and doing a good job makes me happier than I usually am. Subbed
Awesome. Great skills and insight. Just subscribed after watching a few of your other videos. You do some solid work. Looking forward to more in the future!
when dropping those large chunks with Nubs sticking out you got a really be careful it doesn't catch your glove or you're in for a big surprise I'm not a big fan of wearing gloves if I don't have to
Very interesting video indeed, alot of tips and tricks, not that I´m a climber myself yet but I´m looking into learning the craft. Question, with those 2 trees close together at the middle of the video, wouldn´t it be easier and more important, more efficient to tie in on the tallest and strip both trees at the same time before felling the stems? Great video ! Cheers!
Andy, I think I know which two you are talking about. You can tie into the tallest, but when you are chunking trees that need to be limbed, it is usually faster to just lanyard up them since you have to strip them from the bottom up; however, if the limbs are very heavy, definitely climb the tree first, tie in, and then repel. It is far easier to man handle large limbs with a rope above you, but for small limbs you can just fly up the try with a lanyard and swing them where you want. If you tie into the top of a tree and swing Into a shorter one and strip it in the reverse way by cutting limbs from the top first, you have the possibility of a bundle of limbs getting caught up below you on the limbs that would have been stripped had you just went up with a lanyard from the bottom. This bundle can be a pain and let lose when you don't want it to and be unpredictable. Also, you can have a limb deflect on one below you and send it in a way that is unpredictable. Climbers all have stories of limbs hitting tip first and then springing away from the tree and landing a considerable distance away from where you intended to put it. This can cause a lot of damage to a structure or equipment on the ground. It is all dependent on the circumstances you find yourself in. There are so many variables to consider, so your idea of tying in and stripping both probably would have worked just fine. I just don't like having lines above me when I am quickly limbing and chunking a smaller diameter tree. They just get in the way; but that is my personal preference.
Tried to reply to you Nightwalker, but for some reason RU-vid wouldn't accept it. How you set your lines up is dependent on many factors, I like to keep things simple so I just stick with double rope (DRT) for the majority of the time. SRT is definitely superior on broad spreading trees where you will be doing a lot of re-directs, but again, I get by more often than not with just a zig zag and double rope. If you are interested in learning more, take a look a the Educated Climber's channel and other like the Climbing Arborist. Just don't get into the mindset that you need a ton of gear to do this job. Yes there are many new devices on the market, but you don't need them all, just choose one that will work for you and that has been tested and proven by tree guys and you will be just fine. Above all brother, if you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ, now is the time to call upon him. He will save you and give you everlasting life. Don't believe what the world tells you about him, he died to pay for our sins and all he asks is we call upon his name. Salvation is a free gift of God. Have a good rest of your day!
In England it’s actually illegal to climb by yourself or climb around someone who doesn’t have the right tickets, I don’t understand why this doesn’t happen in America, the reason it’s illegal is because if you lose your arm during an operation you won’t exactly be thinking straight cause you lost your arm, so what would you do if you lost your arm when climbing a tree?
1 what if is if I cut myself and I don't have a repel line can I get down spiking before I pass out from loss of blood? Yeah I know your a professional and you have cut thousands of trees,but your working by yourself and it only takes once. It's not slower to work with a repel line and lanyard. You even point out that things happen with the log going towards your excavator. On that same cut your 1 handing that saw could kick out and end up in your belly. I know it's your job and your life, but time and money shouldn't trump safety! You do good work and your knowledge should be passed along. Climb safe.
Thanks for the comment Vince. I am with you on having a repel line for safety incase you get cut bad. In production tree falling and climbing, you have to accept a certain amount of risk every time you are up a tree or hand falling from the ground. It is a matter of how much risk are you willing to accept, and that differs for each person. I have tourniquets that are accessible; however, I know that if I get cut really deep, I more than likely will not make it to the ground fast enough and spending time trying to repel with one hand with sever bleeding may not be the best option. If you can get a tourniquet on, that is your best route to save your life. It could take less than 60 seconds for you to suffer enough blood loss to pass out if you have arterial bleeding. You won't be able to repel to the ground fast enough to get a tourniquet on, so I would rather struggle to get the blood stopped in the tree then try to get to the ground for help. Get a good military / law enforcement CAT tourniquet and become familiar with how to properly use them and apply them one handed. To be honest, if you get cut deep in a tree, I personally think you chances of surviving it are not good. Venous cuts are one thing, but a severed artery is pretty much game over unless you have someone on the ground that can immediately lower you down, which is highly unlikely. God bless, and I pray that the Lord watches over you, me, and everyone else out there working in the trees.
I agree I love how Solo Climb and teach, however I don’t like the one hand thing. It can kick back and hurt you my brother. I got nipped , slow rpms and got 14 stitches. Overall you are great keep Climbing.
quick question....when cutting on ground one normally does a back cut a little bit above facecut notch. you do them below when up in tree. what is the reason?
Hey Allan, if I am doing a snapcut, I make my first cut higher than the back cut which bypasses it. You can do the opposite and make your back cut higher than the front cut, but I have had some bad experiences with that method grabbing my saw on the shelf that is made once the piece brakes free. On snap cutting, it really does not matter whether you are above below, either method works. When cutting a tree from the ground, or in the air, make sure your back cut is above your face cut to prevent the piece from kicking back off the tree and into your chest. You do this when taking out a face cut, but if you are just making a snap cut with a small section, you can go above or below on either cut.
@@SOLOTREESERVICE didn't know about snap cut and just found some other videos about it. thanks. i've got about 10x 10"-14" trees to take down my property. (lake tahoe, 2 trees fell on house and both cars in last 2 years) 8 of them I'm going to spur up them (done that 20yr ago) and attach a rope or 2 & maasdam and pull them down to make sure they don't hit house. but a couple don't have good place to drop other than street and need to be topped. probably going to get someone to do that for those 2. I feel fine working at heights (40yrs rock/ice climbing) but too many unknowns. any pointers on how to get started on amateur level in future?
I'm a really old school climber I cut trees with axes and cross cut saws. would I be efficient for a tree removal business? I have chainsaws but I'm not that good with one. using Axes and cross cut saws is the thing I'm best at.
Gunz, if I could kick it old school with axes and misery whips I would, but in this day age to earn a living at it you definitely have to use modern equipment. There are lots of good videos out there to learn using chainsaws, but make sure you have a solid foundation and lots of experience on the ground with one before you pack it up a tree. If you have any questions, definitely post them on the channel. There are plenty of guys on here with lots of experience that will help you out. God bless brother, and stay safe out there.
Awesome saw Tree Barber. It has never let me down, and I have cut a lot of trees with it. Just make sure to get the larger battery with it for extended run time. I still go to the 201t if I have to chunk a tree down because it has a little more power and you can carry extra fuel on your back.
Yea. They are a lot lighter than typical logging boots, and they still have the steel toe. I have used them for hand falling trees and climbing and they are still going strong. Any weight you can shave off while climbing or trekking through brush falling trees will keep you from tiring out as quick.
@@SOLOTREESERVICE for sure i beat on a similar pair for 4 years before they fell apart the even better part was they were basicly free i traded a climber that was working with me some novelty items off a pallet if crap i bought for basicly nothing for 1 item keen are under rated for sure ✌
